Inner drum for washing machine and washing machine

ABSTRACT

A washing machine inner drum and a washing machine. The inner drum includes a hollow cylinder-shaped inner drum body, at least one counterweight body being arranged fixedly on the inner drum body; when the inner drum body rotates, the counterweight body rotates therewith, and the centre of mass of the counterweight body is positioned on the axis of the inner drum. The washing machine includes a shell and an outer drum, the present washing machine inner drum being arranged within the outer drum. The washing machine inner drum has good damping effects, and when vibration occurs, functions quickly and reduces the vibration.

This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No.201410510619.7 filed Sep. 28, 2014, entitled “WASHING MACHINE INNER DRUMAND WASHING MACHINE”, and under the applicant of Qingdao Haier DrumWashing Machine Co. Ltd., the entire disclosure of which application isincorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure relates to a washing machine inner drum and awashing machine that is provided with the inner drum.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

Washing machine is commonly used household appliances that takeadvantage of the high speed rotation of an inner drum to wash andspin-dry clothes. While the inner drum itself is disposed with respectto its axis in a state of balance, the positions of the clothes cannotbe controlled accurately. As a result, the whole structure constitutedby the inner drum and the clothes is prone to eccentricity relative tothe axis of the inner drum. The inner drum is likely to vibrate sharplyduring the high speed rotation, and thus causes the entire washingmachine to vibrate sharply.

To mitigate the vibration, both a balancing ring and a counterweight areneeded to be disposed in the existing washing machine at the same time.The balancing ring includes at least two cavities in which at least onecavity is filled with liquid and at least one cavity is filled withspherical shaped solid fillings. Particularly, the cavity in which thesolid fillings are located has grease and silicone oil mixed therein forthe purpose of lubrication, and the total amount of solid fillings isless than half of the entire circumference of the cavity. Thecounterweight is provided in an outer drum or in a shell.

The drawbacks of the prior structures of the washing machine lie inthat: (i) the provision of an independent counterweight leads to a lesscompact structure of the whole washing machine, which results indifficulties in design, manufacture and after-sale service, and (ii) adamping effect of the balancing ring is limited.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

An object of the present disclosure is to provide a washing machineinner drum having better damping effects.

Another object the present disclosure is to provide a washing machinehaving a simpler and more compact structure and a higher efficiency ofmanufacture.

In order to achieve the above mentioned objects, on one hand, thepresent disclosure adopts the following technical solutions:

A washing machine inner drum includes a hollow cylinder-shaped innerdrum body, and at least one counterweight body is disposed fixedly tothe inner drum body. When the inner drum body rotates, the counterweightbody is capable of rotating with the inner drum body; and a center ofmass of the counterweight body is positioned in an axis of the innerdrum body.

In particular, the counterweight body is disposed fixedly on an outsideedge and/or an inside edge of the inner drum body.

In particular, each of the counterweight body includes at least twocounterweight blocks, and a total center of mass of the at least twocounterweight blocks is positioned in the axis, or each of thecounterweight body is an annular solid counterweight ring, and a centerof mass of the counterweight ring is positioned in the axis.

In particular, the counterweight body is made from cement, concrete,cast iron and/or lead.

In particular, a guard shell is disposed at an outer side of thecounterweight body.

Further, the guard shell includes at least two cavities that arearranged radially outwardly or sided by side axially with respect to theinner drum body.

In particular, the guard shell includes at least two cavities, whereinthe counterweight body is arranged inside at least one cavity, and amixture including steel balls and silicone oil is filled inside at leastone other cavity.

In particular, the guard shell includes at least two cavities, whereinthe counterweight body is arranged inside at least one cavity, andliquid is filled inside at least one other cavity.

In particular, a front-end flange is disposed at an opening of the innerdrum body, and the counterweight body is fixedly disposed at an outerperipheral face of the front-end flange.

On the other hand, the present disclosure adopts the following technicalsolution:

A washing machine includes a shell and an outer drum, in which the outerdrum is provided with the washing machine inner drum as describedabovetherein.

The washing machine inner drum of the present disclosure is providedwith the counterweight body that is symmetric with the axis of the innerdrum body. When the inner drum body rotates, the center of mass (totalcenter of mass) of the counterweight is positioned in the axis, therebyobtaining a better damping effect. A balancing device and acounterweight device are disposed integrally, which can take effect morerapidly upon occurrence of vibration so as to mitigate the vibration.

The washing machine of the present disclosure is provided with thewashing machine inner drum as mentioned above. No other counterweight isrequired at the outer drum and the outer shell after the counterweightbody is disposed in the inner drum. The present disclosure has a betterdamping effect, a simpler and more compact structure, a higherefficiency of manufacture, and a lower cost, and can reduce thedifficulty of maintenance.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a washing machine inner drum according toa preferred Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of structure of a guard shell according to apreferred Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of structure of a guard shell according to apreferred Embodiment 2 of the present disclosure.

REFERENCE NUMERALS IN THE DRAWINGS

-   1. Inner drum body; 2. Counterweight body; 3. Front-end flange; 4.    Rear-end flange; 5. Guard shell; 6. Balancing ring; 7. Mixture    including steel balls and silicone oil; 8. Inner drum hexagonal    bracket; 10. Water stirring leaf; 51. First cavity; 52. Second    cavity.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

The technical solution of the present disclosure will be furtherdescribed below with reference to the accompanying drawings and by meansof the specific embodiments.

Preferred Embodiment 1

The present preferred embodiment discloses a washing machine inner drum.As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the inner drum includes a hollowcylinder-shaped inner drum body 1, and a front-end flange 3 and arear-end flange 4 are disposed at front and rear openings of the innerdrum body 1, respectively. A hollow annular guard shell 5 is disposed atan outer peripheral face of the front-end flange 3. The guard shell 5includes two cavities, namely a first cavity 52 and a second cavity 52,which are arranged radially inwardly and outwardly relative to the innerdrum body 1. A counterweight body 2 is provided inside one cavity, and amixture 7 including steel balls and silicone oil is filled inside theother cavity. A balancing ring 6 is disposed at an outer peripheral faceof the rear-end flange 4 and is filled with the mixture 7 includingsteel balls and silicone oil. A water stirring leaf 10 is disposedinside the inner drum body 1. An inner drum hexagonal bracket 8 isprovided at an outer side of the rear-end flange 4. The counterweightbody 2 is made from cement.

A balancing ring that is originally provided at the front-end flange 3is replaced with the counterweight body 2 and the mixture 7 includingthe steel balls and the silicone oil functioning as a balancing by theinner drum. The counterweight body 2 is disposed symmetrically withrespect to the axis of the inner drum body 1. When the inner drum body 1rotates, the counterweight body 2 can rotate therewith. Furthermore, thecenter of mass of the counterweight body 2 is located in the axis andhas a better damping effect during the rotation of high speed thereof.

When the amount of eccentricity is smaller, the mixture 7 including thesteel balls and the silicone oil can take effect more rapidly so as tosuppress the unbalanced force caused by an eccentric load. When theeccentric load is greater, the mixture 7 including the steel balls andthe silicone oil plays its role firstly, and then as the rotation speedincreases, the centrifugal force created by the eccentric loadincreases, thus the counterweight body 2 starts taking effect to enablethe inner drum to increase its speed smoothly.

Preferred Embodiment 2

The present preferred embodiment discloses a washing machine inner drumwhich has substantially the same structure as that of the preferredEmbodiment 1. The inner drum includes a hollow cylinder-shaped innerdrum body on which at least one counterweight body is fixedly disposed.Each counterweight body is disposed symmetrically with respect to theaxis of the inner drum body. When the inner drum body rotates, thecenter of mass of the counterweight body is positioned in the axis.

The differences between the preferred embodiment 2 and the preferredembodiment 1 lie in that: the counterweight body is not limited to anintegral counterweight ring, and it may also be a separated typestructure. Namely, each counterweight body includes at least twocounterweight blocks, the total center of mass of the at least twocounterweight blocks is located in the axis. The material of thecounterweight body is not limited to cement and may also be concrete,cast iron and/or lead. The position of the counterweight body is notlimited to the outer peripheral face of the front-end flange of theinner drum body, instead, the counterweight body may also be disposed atouter peripheral face of the rear-end flange or other positions, as longas it can mitigate the vibration effectively as the inner drum bodyrotates at a higher speed. The number of the cavities of the guard shellis not limited to two, and it may be one or more. When there are two ormore cavities, at least one of the cavities is provided with thecounterweight body therein, and at least other one of the cavity isfilled with liquid or the mixture including steel balls and siliconeoil.

Multiple guard shells are not limited to be arranged radially and mayalso be arranged axially. As shown in FIG. 3, the first cavity 52 andthe second cavity 52 are axially arranged side by side with respect tothe inner drum body 1.

Preferred Embodiment 3

The present preferred embodiment discloses a drum washing machine whichincludes a shell, an outer drum and a washing machine inner drum asdescribed above in the preferred Embodiment 1 or Embodiment 2, in whichat least one counterweight body that is symmetrically disposed withrespect to the axis is arranged on a inner drum body. When the innerdrum body rotates, the center of mass of the counterweight body ispositioned in the axis, and thus the vibration of the inner drum bodycan be reduced, thereby improving the stability of the washing machineduring use. No other counterweights are needed to be arranged on theouter drum and the shell such that the structure can be more compact.

Preferred Embodiment 4

The present preferred embodiment discloses a washing machine whosestructure is substantially the same as that of the preferred Embodiment3. The washing machine includes a shell, an outer drum and a washingmachine inner drum as described above in the preferred Embodiment 1 orEmbodiment 2, in which at least one counterweight body that issymmetrically disposed with respect to the axis is arranged on the innerdrum body.

The difference between the preferred embodiment 4 and the preferredembodiment 3 lies in that the washing machine is not limited to be thedrum washing machine, and it may also be a pulsator washing machine orother types of washing machine.

1. A washing machine inner drum, comprising a hollow cylinder-shapedinner drum body, wherein at least one counterweight body is disposedfixedly to the inner drum body; when the inner drum body rotates, thecounterweight body is capable of rotating with the inner drum body; anda center of mass of the counterweight body is positioned in an axis ofthe inner drum body.
 2. The washing machine inner drum of claim 1,wherein the counterweight body is disposed fixedly on at least one of anoutside edge and an inside edge of the inner drum body.
 3. The washingmachine inner drum of claim 1, wherein each counterweight body comprisesat least two counterweight blocks, and a total center of mass of the atleast two counterweight blocks is positioned in the axis.
 4. The washingmachine inner drum of claim 1, wherein the counterweight body is madefrom at least one of cement, concrete, cast iron and lead.
 5. Thewashing machine inner drum of claim 1, wherein a guard shell is disposedat an outer side of the counterweight body.
 6. The washing machine innerdrum of claim 5, wherein the guard shell comprises at least two cavitiesthat are arranged radially outwardly.
 7. The washing machine inner drumof claim 5, wherein the guard shell comprises at least two cavities,wherein the counterweight body is arranged inside at least one cavity,and a mixture including steel balls and silicone oil is filled inside atleast one other cavity.
 8. The washing machine inner drum of claim 5,wherein the guard shell comprises at least two cavities, wherein thecounterweight body is arranged inside at least one cavity, and liquid isfilled inside at least one other cavity.
 9. The washing machine innerdrum of claim 1, wherein a front-end flange is disposed at an opening ofthe inner drum body, and the counterweight body is fixedly disposed atan outer peripheral face of the front-end flange.
 10. A washing machinecomprising a shell and an outer drum, wherein the outer drum is providedwith the washing machine inner drum according to claim
 1. 11. Thewashing machine inner drum of claim 1, wherein each counterweight bodyis an annular solid counterweight ring, and a center of thecounterweight ring is positioned in the axis.
 12. The washing machineinner drum of claim 5, wherein the guard shell comprises at least twocavities that are arranged sided by side axially with respect to theinner drum body.